TV Review: THE STRAIN: Season 1, Episode 9: The Disappeared [FX]

FX’s The Strain The Disappeared TV Show Review. The Strain: Season 1, Episode 9: The Disappeared takes us back into the dark and in doing so, we are provided with some more interesting back story and some new twists. To up the ante, we gained a few new team members in the last episode after losing one and in this episode we have a mother missing in action.

I think you would be hard pressed to find a lot of folks who like Matt (Drew Nelson). He rubbed Ephraim Goodweather (Corey Stoll) the wrong way by calling the FBI on him and over stepped his place with Kelly (Natalie Brown), prompting her to tell him he was a guest in her home. Well tonight, he lost his guest privileges and his head. After trying to put the bite on Zack Goodweather (Ben Hyland), Eph arrives just in time to kill the infected version of Matt in crude fashion. No one messes with his son. When the team arrives we find out there are still some lingering hard feelings about how Jim (Sean Astin) caught a bullet in the last episode. It’s nice to see Nora (Mia Maestro) was a dedicated friend to him. In all honesty, had Vasilly Fet (Kevin Durand) not shot him Abraham (David Bradley) would have surely taken his head. Both of these men were the muscle of the crew. After seeing Eph put in work it appears they have another addition to the muscle crew. The only thing left to do at Kelly’s home, is to figure out what happened to Kelly and dispose of Matt’s body. The crew heads back to Abraham’s shop and leaves Eph and Nora to deal with cleaning up the house. I guess both Eph and Nora caught the bug because after they set fire to Matt’s corpse they set the bedroom on fire. I know I was looking for more action out of Nora but I never guessed she would be having sex with all that’s happening.

Another question was answered during a flashback to the concentration camp. I had noticed there was some issue with Abraham’s hand. Initially I was thinking it could be some sort of infection but the Young Abraham (Jim Watson) answered my questions. Before getting liberated from the camp Abraham confronts The Master (Robert Maillet) and gets his hands broken like match sticks. I really enjoy how they choose to not show this creatures face and the feeling of complete despair. He could have easily chosen to kill Abraham but let him live. I think this was a really great choice to have this man live all these years and not have his hands heal right. It gives him more character and adds to his no-nonsense attitude.

I guess the Director wasn’t done with John Carpenter homage’s. While catching up with Gus (Miguel Gomez) and Felix (Pedro Miguel Arce), we find the two in the back of a transport vehicle…chained up to other prisoners. It doesn’t take long before a scene like John Carpenter’s The Thing jumps off. Poor Felix, now fully converted starts attacking folks who are in the vehicle with him. Gus saves the day and puts a bullet in his friend’s head. We are learning that Gus is much more than just a Boxer. He is showing us he is capable of stepping up and has a shot at surviving a few more rounds of this mayhem.

I have to admit the last scene of the episode was totally worth waiting for. After watching The Master crush a mans head in the first episode and seeing him kill at the concentration camp, I was very curious if they were going to show us what he actually looked like. When that hood came off, you could smell the rotted flesh on this creature. I was very pleased with the detail in the makeup. This is not something you have seen before. This monster has a style all his own. The only thing left is for us to ponder what gift The Master gives Eichorst (Richard Sammel) in his lair. Something tells me things are going to get a lot tougher in the coming episodes.

Leave your thoughts on this review and this episode of The Strain below in the comments section. For more The Strain reviews, photos, videos, and information, visit our The Strain Page, subscribe to us by Email, “follow” us on Twitter, Tumblr, or “like” us on Facebook.

About the author

Brian Fire

Brian is a screenwriter and visual fx Artist who loves science fiction, drama and follows many TV shows. He is a versatile writer who is published and has written copy for: CompUsa, The California State Lottery and Princess Cruise lines. Every year he attends The Sundance Film Festival and the San Diego Comic Con filling up on his other passions…indie films, comic books and video games.